Free The Lime and the Dead: A Key West Culinary Cozy - Book 3 by Summer Prescott

– perhaps the only thing that
might make it a tad better would be to have a handsome man with whom to spend
some time.
    “What’s
a lovely lady like you doing out alone on a beautiful night like this?” she
heard the unmistakably familiar voice of Detective Bernard Cortland call out
from behind.
    “What’s
it to you?” she challenged, still angry at the detective for having suspected
her and Tiara of having committed a heinous crime. “Did someone rob a bank or
something? I assure you I’m not out here looking for my escape boat,” she
drawled sarcastically.
    “Okay,
okay, I suppose I deserved that,” he held his hands up apologetically. He had
jogged over to where she stood, arms by her side, flip-flops dangling from her
fingers. She’d never seen him in casual clothing before, and had to admit that
the sight of the handsome detective barefoot, tanned and toned, in board shorts
and a Senor Toad t-shirt, was a sight to behold. “Mind if I join you?”
he asked, seeming almost shy.
    “It’s
a free country,” Marilyn shrugged, secretly pleased when he fell in step beside
her. “You look almost normal in street clothes,” she observed with a
mischievous grin.
    “Does
that mean that I don’t look normal otherwise?” he chuckled.
    “Well,
I just always assumed that you dressed well to intimidate criminals,” she
teased.
    “Does
it work?” he shot back. When Marilyn’s mouth dropped open in astonishment, a
grin broke across his face like the dawn. “Ha! Gotcha,” he laughed.
    “Oh
just you wait,” she warned, smiling at his antics. She’d never seen this side
of the typically taciturn detective before, and she found it wildly appealing.
    “Are
you threatening an officer of the law, ma’am?” he asked gravely, trying hard
not to smile.
    “Why,
are you going to handcuff me?” she retorted.
    “Nah,
I’m not into the rough stuff,” he responded without thinking. “Oh geez, I
totally didn’t mean that the way that it sounded…” he floundered, clearly
embarrassed.
    “Hmm…even
in the moonlight, that’s a lovely shade of red,” Marilyn mused, enjoying his
discomfort tremendously.
    “You
do like having the upper hand, don’t you?” he asserted with barely disguised
admiration.
    She
shrugged and shook her head. “No, honestly, I’m tired of it,” she admitted. “I
face challenges every day, and I actually think that it would be quite nice if
I could just relax for a while and not always be the one who has to take care
of every situation.” She’d had similar thoughts many times in the past, but had
never told anyone until now.
    “Ever
consider the possibility that some situations can take care of themselves and
that others can simply be let go?” he challenged.
    “Well
now, what fun would that be?” she laughed at herself. “I may be tired of it,
but I seem to thrive on it.”
    “Some
people find it helpful to share the load. Food for thought,” he said, looking
at her strangely.
    “Food
for thought,” she echoed, returning his look.
    “Well,
this is my turn-off,” he said gesturing to the boardwalk that disappeared up
the beach, away from the water.
    “Thanks
for keeping me company,” Marilyn smiled, drinking in the sight of him one last
time.
    “The
pleasure was all mine,” he grinned and trotted toward the boardwalk.
    Marilyn
took in the view and had to disagree. “No,” she said under her breath. “The
pleasure was definitely mine.”
    Smiling
a goofy smile that refused to go away, she turned for home, where her amazing
daughter would be waiting for the pizza guy and selecting a romantic comedy to
watch, her new best friend curled up and purring in her lap.
    Yep,
life was good, and seemed to be getting better by the day. Marilyn looked up at
the moon, and, for the moment at least, all was well with her world.
     
     

 
    A letter from the Author
    To each and every one of my Amazing readers: I hope you enjoyed this story as much as I enjoyed writing
it.  Let me